Statistically speaking, January wasn’t
that awful. Heck, it didn’t even break into the top five in terms of low temperatures or
snowfall in Columbus.

But when we look back on the past 31 days, many of us would surely say
good riddanceto bad weather.

“It was the coldest winter we’ve had in a long time — perhaps in 20 years,” said Jeffrey Rogers,
state climatologist.

Dizzying snow, stupefying cold, shuttered schools and businesses, burst water pipes and
slippery, crash-filled commutes. January had it all.

We even learned two new meteorological terms to try out at the water cooler:
polar vortex and
snow roller.

The average temperature last month was 22.8 degrees — downright toasty compared with the six
coldest Januarys: 1985 (21.7); 1994 (21.3); 1982 and 1979 (tie at 21.2); 1978 (19.0); and the
record 1977 (11.3 degrees).

There were seven days when the temperature dipped to zero or below. The coldest that Columbus
measured was minus 11. Central Ohio’s coldest was minus 23 in Newark.

As for snow, we got not quite 18 inches, short of the 20 inches that fell in 2009, the
fifth-snowiest January ever.

The snowiest was 1978, when 34.4 inches fell.

Here’s another one for the water cooler — the average temperature in Columbus was 7 degrees
lower than in Anchorage, Alaska (which, in fairness, had its fourth-warmest January on record),
said Rick Thoman, a climate scientist for the National Weather Service there.

“When Alaska is very warm in the winter, it’s quite common for the lower 48 (states) to be
colder,” he said.

An assault of polar cold in the month’s first and last week was the result of an abnormal dip in
the usually balanced counterclockwise spin of stratospheric air above the North Pole known as the
polar vortex.

The first dip reached Ohio on Jan. 6, possibly causing a 100-year-old water main to rupture
beneath N. 4th Street at Gay Street during rush hour. Streets and underground parking garages
flooded. The explosive force blew a hole in the street that cost the city more than $35,000 to
fix.

The cold in the days that followed also was blamed for 21 deaths across the United States and at
least six in Ohio. On certain days, every state experienced temperatures that fell below
freezing.

The storms affected hundreds of millions of people and cost billions of dollars, according to
national estimates.

Other chilling effects:

• Salt reserves dwindled; the Ohio Department of Transportation declined to lend any excess to
municipalities.

• Schools across Ohio used up calamity days, with many exceeding the five the state allows. This
month, the General Assembly is expected to approve adding four calamity days.

Jessica Doone, 29, homeless for four years, said she came close to frostbite while walking
around Downtown during this week’s biting cold.

“I had to stop at a gas station to put my foot in hot water just to keep going,” she said during
a stop at the Main Library.

Seniors also were hard-hit. Many found that they didn’t have enough propane to heat their houses
or enough money to cover soaring electricity bills.

“We are seeing a lot of difficulty just in handling a lot of the economics of it,” said Bethany
Anderson, of the Central Ohio Area Agency on Aging. People are “missing doctor’s appointments
because they can’t plow driveways.”

A severe winter, however, was a boon to some businesses. Sleds, shovels and snow boots, for
example, flew off store shelves.

Then there are snow rollers, which central Ohio residents learned about this week.

These delicate rolls form during a perfect mix of snow, wind and cold. Social media were abuzz
with sightings and pictures.

All in all, it has been the kind of weather that people will talk about well into spring.